Seoul, Republic of Korea – 04 June 2024- Leaders from Africa, the Republic of Korea and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) have jointly called for more collaboration and cooperation to bridge the climate finance gap and tackle the challenges of plastics pollution that the continent – and the world- faces to ensure a better, greener future for all. Despite being the world’s most vulnerable continent to climate change, Africa receives less than 12% of the nearly $300 billion it needs annually to cope with the devastating impacts of the climate crisis.

Speaking at the High-level Forum on Accelerating Access to Green and Climate Finance for Africa and High-level Forum on Enhancing Sustainability and Global Collaboration on Plastics, African and Korean leaders and green growth champions called for more collaboration to tackle the world’s two key daunting challenges: access to climate finance and plastics pollution. Both High-level Forums, held on June 4 on the sidelines of the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit, brought together close to 220 participants including policy and decision-makers, political leaders, researchers and academicians, climate change actors as well green growth champions from Africa, Republic of Korea and the world.

“Success in achieving ambitious emissions reduction targets is dependent on availability of significant climate or green finance, the current levels of which are grossly inadequate for a just transition in Africa. The continent needs access to sustained financial and technical resources from a wide range of sources, public and private, bilateral and multilateral, including alternative innovative sources. We need to step up climate finance in Africa through a range of initiatives including promoting innovative financial instruments and business models that can mobilize large-scale private-sector finance,” said H.E. Amb. Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Development at the African Union.

“The severe consequences of climate crisis across communities in Africa are readily evident.  Recent extreme weather impacts, such as the devastating droughts in Malawi and the widespread floods across Kenya and Tanzania, highlight the urgent necessity for enhanced action and investments to address the existential threat we face throughout the world. Accelerating green and climate finance will require us to be innovative and work together with all partners and stakeholders across sectors and industries, national borders and political lines, and generations and genders,” said H.E. Ban Ki-Moon, President of the Assembly and Chair of the Council, GGGI.

On the other side, plastic waste and pollution continue to have hard impact on human health, leading to loss of livelihoods and biodiversity, exacerbating greenhouse gas emissions, and compromising ecosystem functioning – further fueling the global environmental crisis.

“To achieve sustainability in plastics, it will require us to prevent the use of plastic as much as possible and prioritize its alternatives, to ensure durability for more reuse in case used and guarantee recycling mechanisms to end plastic pollution. Furthermore, we must work together to enhance the accountability of producers and importers of plastic for safe and sustainable environmental management practices. We must act decisively on plastic to protect human health, biodiversity, and our planet,” noted Rwanda’s Minister of Environment, H.E. Dr. Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya, through a video message.

By organizing these events, the Global Green Growth Institute and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Korea, put a spotlight on the global challenges confronting Africa, emphasizing environmental sustainability and social inclusivity on the path to achieving sustainable development.

Alongside the Forums, GGGI also held an immersive exhibition to spotlighting the evolving dynamics of Korea-Africa relations, highlight the importance of cooperation and showcase the importance of artistic expression and scientific discourse in amplifying messages and supporting the transition to green growth.

 Note to Editors

The High-Level Forums on (i) Accelerating Access to Green and Climate Finance for Africa and (ii) Enhancing Sustainability and Global Collaboration on Plastics were organized by the GGGI in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea. Both forums featured key note addresses and presentations from about twenty leaders from Africa and the Republic of Korea and emphasized the need for amplified collaboration to facilitate access to climate finance and tackle the global crisis of plastics waste and pollution. Below we present some of the quotes from the speakers:

1. “The Republic of Korea, as a responsible member of the global community, is willing and ready to work shoulder to shoulder with African partners to fight against enormous challenges of climate change.  The Korean government is scaling up its financial resources to support countries vulnerable to climate change.” – H.E. Sang-Hyup Kim, Co-Chairperson, Presidential Commission on Carbon Neutrality and Green Growth, Republic of Korea
2.   “We call upon all parties, and all nations to come together and rally behind the call to put in place a legally binding global treaty on plastics to ensure that we have regulatory tools in place and guarantee that every continent and every country implements the provisions of the Treaty in line with local realities and challenges,” – H.E. Roger Baro, Minister of Environment, Water and Sanitation of Burkina Faso
3.  “By harnessing the power of international cooperation and involving diverse sectors, we can develop comprehensive approaches to address plastic pollution and pave the way for a more sustainable future for generations to come. GGGI has been a key partner in addressing the global plastic burden, actively supporting initiatives aimed at promoting plastic sustainability and integrating circular economy principles into waste management globally. In Africa, for instance through policy development and projects implementation, GGGI has played a significant role and undertaken groundbreaking action that address plastic pollution in Senegal, Rwanda, and Uganda,” – Dr. Frank Rijsberman, Director-General, GGGI
4. “There is a need to significantly reduce our reliance on plastics, develop and design eco-friendly products, and increase the rate of use of recycled plastic. In addition, we must increase technical capabilities to establish efficient collection system for plastic waste and expand recycling facilities to address the plastics crisis,” – Prof. Seok-Wan Kim, President of the Korea Society of Waste Management

About the Korea-Africa Summit

The Korea-Africa Summit 2024 is aimed at fostering mutual, beneficial, and sustainable long-term cooperative relations between Korea and Africa. It is part of Korea’s efforts to build closer relationships with African countries across various sectors including economic, cultural, and particularly the developmental sector. The Korea-Africa Summit 2024 will take place in Seoul, Korea from June 4-5, 2024, and will be held under the theme: “The Future We Make Together: Shared Growth, Sustainability, and Solidarity.”  Learn More about the Summit at https://2024rokasummit.kr/

About the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI)

The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) was founded as a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organization in 2012 at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. GGGI supports its Member States in transitioning their economies toward a green growth model that simultaneously achieves poverty reduction, social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and economic growth. With 48 Member States and over 24 Partner countries and regional integration organizations in the process of accession, GGGI delivers programs and projects in over 51 countries. These initiatives encompass developing innovative green growth solutions, technical support, capacity building, policy planning & implementation, and assistance in building a pipeline of bankable green investment projects, project financing, investments, and knowledge sharing. GGGI’s work contributes to its Member States’ efforts to fulfill the Sustainable Development Goals and the Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement. 

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For more information, visit:  https://gggi.org

For more information, or to schedule an interview at the summit contact:

GGGI Africa

Jean Pierre Bucyensenge,

Senior Regional Associate, Communications & Knowledge Sharing
+225 071 40 06 641 (call) or +250 738 810 145 (watsapp)  | jean.bucyensenge@gggi.org

GGGI Seoul HQ
Mona Laczo,

Communications & Knowledge Sharing Unit Head
+82 10 9530 0358 | mona.laczo@gggi.org